Rural seniors face major issues accessing aged care at home

In a report to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, La Trobe University researchers painted a dismal picture of the provision of aged care through the Commonwealth Home Support Program and home care packages outside metropolitan areas, despite research showing most older people would rather be supported at home than move to residential care facilities.

The researchers identified a number of issues with aged care services in rural areas, including long waiting lists, inability to make complaints due to lack of other care options, and difficulty accessing relevant information.

Older people in rural areas were further disadvantaged by lack of internet services and poor digital skills; isolation from family and friends; barriers in negotiating with service providers; a lack of transport options, especially problematic if they need to attend larger regional cities or metropolitan areas to receive services (such as specialist medical or allied health services); and reduced financial capacity to source alternative services or fund solutions for access problems (such as hiring taxis to attend appointments).

Director of La Trobe University's John Richards Centre for Rural Ageing Research, Professor Irene Blackberry, said older people in rural areas were at a disadvantage when compared to their metropolitan counterparts.

"Often there is only one provider in a town or region, meaning older people can't 'shop around', and may have to endure poor service from their provider, if there is no other option," she said.

"Compounding this a lack of clear, easily accessible information to help people access the services they need, or make informed choices about their care."

The government's My Aged Care website, which is supposed to help people make choices about their options - and which was recently upgraded after earlier complaints - also came in for scathing criticism, with Professor Blackberry saying it often left people confused.

"Many older people reported having to wade through copious amounts of irrelevant information to find what they needed," she said. "That's if they had the skills to search online in the first place."

The report said some rural primary healthcare workers lacked knowledge of My Aged Care and local aged care services.

"This is problematic for older people who lack digital literacy skills or are isolated from family and friends, and therefore rely on healthcare workers for trusted information," Professor Blackberry said.

Senior research and policy manager at the Consumer Policy Research Centre, Ben Martin Hobbs, said understanding issues facing rural older people is critical in future planning.

"Better understanding how people actually make choices, and the difficulties they face in navigating these complex services, is essential to ensure policymakers design markets that are fair, inclusive and accessible to all consumers," he said.

Research participants raised a number of issues about care in the home. They included: tasks home care workers were not allowed to do, like cleaning windows; the high cost of services which often made it prohibitive to use a care worker; very high administration charges; difficulties in changing a provider; and poor accounting practices by the providers.

Recommendations in the submission include:

The research project brought together multidisciplinary advisers and consumers in partnership with 10 rural Victorian health services. Interviews were conducted with 20 older people living in rural Victoria and NSW.

More than 9300 submissions to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety were received before submissions closed on July 31.